THEY were hired to protect vulnerable women and young girls. Instead, it is alleged, the protectors became predators.

That’s the story emerging from the Central African Republic this week where seven women and one 14-year-old girl say they were set upon by United Nations peacekeepers. Worse still, the UN staff are accused of using food as a trade piece in exchange for sex.

As shocking as that might sound, it is not a unique experience. Last year, an independent panel released a report on sexual exploitation and abuse by UN staff and peacekeepers that showed at times perpetrators committed the crimes while wearing the agency’s signature blue helmets.

Human Rights Watch says UN staff were implicated in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, the Democratic Republic of Congo, East Timor, Haiti, Liberia, Sierra Leone and South Sudan, among others.

Troops from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Uganda, Burundi and the Democratic Republic of Congo were also accused.

‘I DIDN’T WANT TO HAVE SEX WITH THEM’

The most recent cases are believed to have taken place between October and December last year in Bambari where war rages between Christian and Muslim militias and thousands of people have been displaced.

For one young woman, she says she was set upon after being asked to trade her body for food.

The woman says she was approached by peacekeepers working near a military base and dragged into the bush.

“I didn’t want to have sex with them,” she said. “There were three of them on me. They said if I resisted they would kill me. They took me one-by-one.”

A 14-year-old girl told a similar story. She said she too was pulled into long grass where the attack took place.

“The men were dressed in their military uniforms and had their guns,” she said. “I walked by and suddenly one of them grabbed me by my arms and the other one ripped off my clothes.

“They pulled me into the tall grass and one held my arms while the other one pinned down my legs and raped me. The soldier holding my arms tried to hold my mouth, but I was still able to scream. Because of that they had to run away before the second soldier could rape me.”

Each of the victims identified by Human Rights Watch was living in a camp for the displaced, the group said.

In January, similar cases were reported. When the United Nations’ Assistant Secretary-General Anthony Banbury spoke about them in a press conference, he was visibly shaken and almost broke down in tears.

On January 29, the UN’s human rights office said it had uncovered six cases of alleged sexual abuse against children. One of those cases involved a seven-year-old girl who told authorities she traded sex for water and biscuits. French soldiers working in the Central African Republic were implicated.

Human Rights Watch says the attacks represent a failure within the UN to appropriately screen peacekeepers before they are hired.

“The UN should ensure that peacekeepers are vetted prior to deployment and trained on the UN’s zero tolerance policy on sexual exploitation and abuse,” the group wrote in a report this week.

Africa researcher for HRW said the UN’s reputation was at stake if strong action wasn’t taken in response to the alleged crimes.

“Peacekeepers who rape, exploit, or kill should not simply be sent home with no commitment to justice,” Lewis Mudge said.

“The UN should use its full leverage with troop-contributing countries to ensure that those who abuse victims and tarnish the UN and its mission face justice befitting their crimes.”